


The Witch and the Mage

by JamtheDingus



Series: Voltron Rarepair Week, 2017 [4]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: (warning for brief mention of keith getting stabbed), Alternate Universe - Video Game World, Gaming, Gen, M/M, MMORPGs, Virtual Reality, Voltron Rarepair Week 2017, day four: free day, errr give me more tags if there are any adljsha, lots of world building
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-15
Updated: 2017-02-15
Packaged: 2018-09-24 16:14:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9769865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JamtheDingus/pseuds/JamtheDingus
Summary: Shiro sighed heavily, dragging his hand down his face as the rest of the team respawned.The grassy hills they got transported to were about 20 miles away from the Tower of Calamity, the exact same tower they had just got absolutely destroyed in. There was no way they would be able to walk all the way back and beat all twenty five levels again.Not tonight, anyway.---Shiro and Hunk take a night on the town.





	

**Author's Note:**

> ngl this was my most favorite fic to write this week adsdlasdhl i had so much fun and i probably will write a bit more for it eventually, when i have nothing else on my plate
> 
> \---
> 
> Hunk - Witch (support)  
> Shiro - Mage (support)  
> Lance - Thief (damage)  
> Keith - Berserker (tank)  
> Pidge - Necromancer (damage/support)

“The Goblins of Dorfenshertin should be showing up after this room, so make sure you save your buffs.”

“Shiro’s talking to _you_ , Keith. Mr. ‘Sorry, I Was On Cooldown’.” Lance griped.

“Are you still pissy you died?” Keith sighed heavily, the sound echoing in his burgonet, only his half-lidded eyes visible through the faceplate. Nonetheless they _all_ could hear the grin in his voice.  

“Uh, _yeah_. I lost my Orb of Disarray! That last boss would’ve gone down like _that,_ if you had your buffs up.”

The two of them butted heads, though Lance quickly pulled away when his bare forehead clanged hard against Keith’s metal helmet.

“Asshole.”

“Guys, kinda need your help here.” Hunk grunted, wringing his fingers as he casted Barricade on the door twice in succession. Still, it buckled and cracked under the weight of the forty or so goblins that had begun to spawn into existence.

The room of the twenty-five story castle they were currently hiding in was basically a tiny library. Thick dust lined the walls, caking dozens of book spines in a layer of dirty white. Spider webs criss-crossed the ceiling, and oozing egg sacs harmlessly swung above their heads.

(Harmless if you didn’t touch the acid, that is.)

Holes in the walls, that counted as windows if you squinted, were so high up that they would have had to stand on each other’s shoulders to peek out of them. That, combined with the night cycle outside, led to that awfully dreary lighting they were subjected to while they awaited their demise.

Lance cracked his knuckles, cocking his gun and striking a pose. “I bet you I can take them all with no health packs.”

Shiro shook his head, wiggling his fingers as purple energy crackled around them. “No bets. Not if you guys actually _want_ to qualify for the tournament next weekend.”

He turned to the pendant that gave him a view of their base. It was safely nestled in a corner of the realm, about two kingdoms away from their current location. The pendant, a reward given to them from one of their very first missions, allowed for two way visual communication.

There, in the corner surrounded by her golems and undead pets sat their necromancer. “Pidge, how long until you finish that buff?”

“Twenty seconds. Well, that _plus_ the fifteen more I need to be able to project it over to you. After that, Hunk should be ready to cast Vindicate.”

“Got it. Think you can hold it for 35 more seconds, Hunk?”

“Not really.” The panicking witch hissed, summoning a wall of cobblestone to block the few goblins that slipped in past the cracking wood and waning barriers.

Keith grimaced, hefting his broadsword in front of him as he widened his stance. “We might need to take them out now and just hope for the best.”

The team nodded and, with a weary sigh, Hunk let his enchantment fall as he slid to the back to provide support. Witches tended to be _quite_ squishy, especially when it came to large mobs.

“We’ve got this!”

\---

Shiro sighed heavily, dragging his hand down his face as the rest of the team respawned.

The grassy hills they got transported to were about 20 miles away from the Tower of Calamity, the exact same tower they had just got absolutely destroyed in. There was no way they would be able to walk all the way back _and_ beat all twenty five levels again.

Not tonight, anyway.

Pidge sent them a fussy group message, seeing as she wasn’t able to contact them directly now that their direct communicator was lost. Shiro skimmed past the filtered curse words, making a mental note to have the team rerun the dungeon later to get another pendant.

 _‘I’ll try to find some outside help for next time. See you four tomorrow.’_ Was her signing off message, and Shiro knew she was probably going to be up all night contacting guilds or mercenaries for hire.

From behind him, Lance hacked up a lung as he rubbed his throat. “I swear, these goblins get more and more ruthless the longer I play this damn game.”

The pain, of course, had faded as soon as he lost his last health bar, but the feel of their grubby fingers against his esophagus still ghosted across his skin. Nevermind the fact that his under armor extended up to his chin.

Maybe it was a glitch? Ah, well. These games _were_ made to be realist, either way.

Keith respawned next, hands pressed across his abdomen as he let out a ragged breath. He fell hard against the grass, shoving his helm from his face, and Shiro gave him a tentative smile. “Stabbed?”

He only received a scowl in response, but by the way Keith kept checking his belly for signs of blood, he’d probably hit it right on the nose.

“What’s the point of full metal armor if I can just get stabbed between the cracks, anyway?” He pouted, pulling himself up.

Hunk was last, and the ends of his robe were singed as he materialized into view. “Oh, geez. We went down so hard.” He rubbed soot from his eyes, dusting his blackened fingers off on his trousers.

“Yeah, we did.” Shiro couldn’t help but laugh, before he heaved another sigh. “I guess we’d better call this a night, huh?”

Lance grunted as Hunk helped him up. “I guess so. I have family bonding activities tonight, anyway, so I should probably go help set up.” He stretched his arms above his head, curling his back in until it popped. “Should I port back to camp or?”

“We probably need to restock on potions and all that, so go for it. See you tomorrow, sharpshooter.”

With a click of his tongue and a wink, Lance poofed away with only a glittering ring around his feet left as proof he even stood there at all. It disappeared about two seconds later.

“What about you two?” Shiro asked as he pulled up his map, hand hovering in the air as he zoomed in on the nearest town.

Hunk and Keith slid up beside him, peering over his shoulder.

“A trip to town sounds fun to me.” Hunk shrugged, pulling out his bone whistle to call his mount.

“I’ll probably split up to buy some new gear before I log off.” Keith voiced, tapping his chin as he began a mental list of the items he’d need. “But can I hitch a ride?”

Shiro flicked the map away, blinking as his eyes refocused. Hunk just hummed his agreement as his Balmera landed.

They were round animals with sharp edges, rocky in appearance, but soft if they trusted you enough to let you pet them. Their wings were thin, but strong like expensive leather, and their eyes held a kindness that almost made Hunk cry the first time he saw them. Of course, he never admitted it aloud, since no one else ever expresses such sentiments about their digital (as in, _not real_ ) mount.

Rumor has it, though, that if you levelled them high enough they could give you a permanent healing buff, no matter if they were with you or not. Hunk was almost there. Just a few more enchanted books and one more dungeon, and he’d have the gauntlet he needed to summon the -

“Hunk?”

“Huh?”

“We’re ready to go.” Shiro smiled, and Hunk flushed at the teasing look.

“Sorry, I just… zoned out.” He cleared his throat, following the other two as he climbed aboard his pet. “To Dimrun!”

\---

Despite the name, Dimrun was a very lively borough. The homes sat so close together, they may as well have been connected townhouses. Every front porch had a personalized lantern, lit almost exactly at the same time each night.

There always seemed to be a festival happening in Dimrun, and that night was no exception. Every person in town, NPC or actual player, seemed to be dressed in silly costumes and twirling in drunken swagger.

Keith hopped from the Balmera first, weapon already out and glinting in the warm torchlit as he inspected the dents and cracks in the steel.

“I’ll see you both around.”

“Good luck finding an open shop.” Hunk offered, and coming from anyone else it probably would have sounded sarcastic. Keith took the comment in stride and offered him a curt nod, disappearing quickly in the thick ocean of the crowd that swarmed the town.

Hunk and Shiro slid from the mount, and Hunk offered it a few treats as he hooked it up in the stall.

“What are you planning for tonight?” Shiro asked, idly picking at his prosthetic. It was almost a mirror image of the one he had in real life, and Hunk always greatly admired both.

“I was probably just going to hit up the tavern; dance around. Lurk.”

“Mind if I join you?”

Hunk glanced over at Shiro, who looked very much so like a person who did not want to be alone at that moment. His eyes were averted downwards, a sharp contrast to his usual cool confidence, and Hunk hummed thoughtfully.

“Please, do.”

Shiro jerked in surprise, as if he had been expecting Hunk to blow him off. “Yeah?”

Hunk flipped off his ornamental hat, donned with jewels, ribbons, and all, and offered his elbow to Shiro, who hooked his fingers in the crook of his elbow automatically in response. “Yep!”

\---

The tavern, surprisingly, was empty (other than the barkeeper) when they stepped in. Perhaps all of the drunken patrons decided the party was better in the crisp fall air instead of the stuffy, smoke-ridden bar.

The pair quickly stole a table in the back, away from the creaking door and crackling hearth.

Hunk dumped his satchel across the top, spilling charmed gemstones and thick scroll pages across the alcohol-stained wood.

“What’s all this?” Shiro tucked his elbows on top of the table as he peered down at the writings. “Making a new spell?”

“Mhm! Something for Keith when he runs into battle. Most of my spells aren’t quick enough to block the amount of hits he takes, but I was thinking I could use something like a deflection to help decrease the damage and throw it back at the enemies. It probably would have been especially helpful today, what with that one mage-goblin.”

Hunk sighed heavily. They probably would have been successful in their earlier battle if only it hadn’t appeared as soon as their skills were on cooldown.

“I swear, we’re so unlucky these days. Mage-goblins have like a 1-in-5,000 chance of showing up in a mob! He totally wiped the floor with our butts.” Hunk continued on, picking at the less-than-spectacular gems and pushing them back in the bag.

“If one of us had been able to deflect, maybe he wouldn’t have been such a problem. Then again, once Lance was out of ammo we were pretty much screwed anyway, since he still hasn’t gotten his reload buff.”

Hunk blinked his eyes, glancing up from his color-coded piles to look at Shiro, who just stared at him in something akin to amazement. Or perhaps he zoned out halfway through. “Oh, geez… I went on a rant there, didn’t I? Sorry…”

“It’s fine, Hunk. Us support-types have to rant to _someone_ sometime, right?” Shiro lifted his hand, placating smile dancing across his lips, and a crackle of magic-electricity shot through the air.

Hunk grinned, bringing up his own fingers to call forward a halo of fire that rimmed his knuckles. Their fists touched in a show of camaraderie, and their magic sparked as soon as they met.

“Right.”

\---

The two of them spent most of that night planning new strategies and organizing each other’s spells.

Hunk had no idea how Shiro survived with the disorganized mess that was his spell-cast list. His enhancements were at the very bottom, each separated by physical attacks, and he only had one or two of his favorite spells quick-slotted.

“How on earth do you even survive?”

Shiro shrugged. “I like going through the motions. It grounds me.”

Hunk didn’t argue with that. He, himself, had a few larger spells that he preferred to use his entire body to cast, other than a few hand motions. His personal favorite was Vitality, which he only ever used to speed up the growth of his herbs for his potions.

Shiro, though he prefered body magic, suggested Hunk teach him a few healing spells. If only to help himself in the midst of battle so Hunk could focus on the two damage-magnets that were Lance and Keith.

That was how the two of them found each other on the outskirts of town, sitting beneath a willow tree that seemed to want to wrap them up in its vines and steal them away forever. It had a name that escaped Hunk at the moment, but there was some sort of folk-tale he’d heard a while back about it being the spirit of an ancient creature that used to destroy cities with merely a flick of its wrist. If he remembered right, the spirit had been a woman who’d lost her daughter to a pointless war, bent on the destruction of those who’d wronged her and her family. The only reason why she stopped was because of the daughters of those who she’d killed stepped forward and were prepared to give their lives as an exchange for the safety of their people.

Heavy stuff, it was.

The lowing-hanging leaves tickled Hunk’s nose, and he sneezed.

Shiro smiled fondly as he plopped down on the roots that jutted from the ground, patting the spot beside him. “Bless you.”

They joined hands, and Hunk was pleasantly surprised at the warm pulse he felt through the prosthetic. It felt almost the exact same as Shiro’s other palm, the only discernable difference being the smooth texture of metal versus the battle-worn grooves of his skin.

“So, uh… First thing you have to do is focus your magic in your palms.” Hunk began, “Try to keep it away from your fingertips, or else it’ll shoot right up into the air, especially since you’re used to projectile spells.”

Shiro silently nodded his head, eyes fluttering shut.

Hunk followed suit, calling his magic forward to help coax it out of his mage-friend. “Try to keep your breathing steady, too. Once you get used to calling it, you won’t have to worry, but if you start panicking you might hurt yourself.”

“Got it.”

It took quite a while for the surge to pulse through, partly because it was a struggle to get the magic to bypass the metal fingers, but once it did, Hunk nearly gasped aloud.

The magic was _strong_. Violently so, and it washed over his skin like a malevolent deluge. A harsh shiver ran up his spine, coiling at the base of his skull as sickening thoughts took over. He saw destruction, created by his own hands, overtaking every city and forest of the realm that was Voltron.

When the flow didn’t quell after a few seconds, he had to yank his hands back to take a shaky breath, curling over himself as he counted his breath, his fingers, the stitches of his clothes… anything to calm him down as his heart threatened to break free of his ribcage.

“Hunk?” Came Shiro’s frightened tone. “What happened?”

His brow furrowed, and he had to scrub at his eyes with the heels of his hands to quash the violent images. “You didn’t feel that?”

“I felt… a pull. A soft tug, I guess. Did I hurt you?”

Hunk shooed his worried hands away. “No, no. I’m fine.” He pulled himself up, and helped Shiro to do the same. “I… we should try this another day. I think I’m just tired. Is that okay?”

“Of course.” Shiro nodded. “Come on, let’s… go look at the festivities before you log off.”

Hunk ran a shaky hand through his bangs, nearly ripping his headband from his hair.

“Yes, that sounds… great, actually.”

\---

Eventually, Hunk calmed enough to stop his fingers from shaking.

It helped that Shiro constantly bought him things to keep his hands full. Hand-carved statuettes made from woods, glass, and even animal bones were given to him by his guild leader, each one some type of feline, and each one was painted a color that correlated to their teammates. A lounging blue cat for Lance, a ferocious red panther frozen mid-leap for Keith, and a tiny green margay, curled around an equally green tree for Pidge.

The carvings were safely stashed away in his satchel as they rounded on food stalls, and Shiro was quick to buy anything that seemed to catch Hunk’s eye. Half of what they ended up getting ended up in Shiro’s stomach, the endless pit that it was.

Hunk shook his head fondly after Shiro downed his seventh pheasant leg. They plucked up a pair of warm ciders to finish off the quick meal, and Hunk curled both his hands around the mug as the cool breeze of autumn nipped at his nose.  

More and more booths lined the city square, and all were hand-decorated more and more intricately the farther into town they walked. Hunk stopped often to admire the smooth lines of the painted tents.

“You should set up a shop one of these days.” Shiro mentioned after the fifth or sixth stop.

“Really?” Hunk had never thought about it, but he’d be able to sell a plethora of things. Spellbooks, jewelry, _advice_.

“Mhm. Don’t be afraid to ask me if you need a loan.” Shiro winked, and Hunk felt his face flush at the offer.

“I’ll see what I can do.”  

\---

They somehow rounded back to the same tavern, through the back door this time. Because it doubled as an inn, the pair had to wander through an array of hallways to get back to the bar.

Shiro stopped them somewhere in the middle of the building, eyes catching on a painting that seemed to be featured in every main building in every town of the game. It showed up so often that most stopped paying it any attention, but Shiro seemed captivated by it.

Hunk backtracked a few steps to follow his gaze.

It was a painting of Altea, the once sparkling city that had ruled every land and region. Unfortunately, for the sake of the plot, Zarkon had destroyed it and stolen away the ever-loved royalty that once ruled them with kind hands.

These days, it was hard to go anywhere unless you announced your allegiance to the Galra, Zarkon’s denomination. Many did, if only to keep their livelihood, but others, players like Shiro, Hunk, Lance, Keith, and Pidge, fought against him every chance they got.

Once the next update patched through, they would be able to try to rescue the royal family. Apparently it was going to be the biggest update in the history of the game, and the family would not be NPCs, but _real_.

Those were probably just rumors, though.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Shiro clutched his arm, fingers squeaking against the polished metal. “I just… had a thought.”

Hunk gave an introspective hum, and the sound awkwardly hung in the air. Then, tentative, jittery fingers brushed against his knuckles, and Hunk took it upon himself tangle them in his own. He wanted to ask if Shiro was alright again, but Shiro was a chronic liar when it came to those sorts of questions.

“I still can’t believe you’re one of the only ones ever to have escaped Zarkon after being captured. Most people stop playing, or restart, after that.” Hunk remarked instead.

“Yeah, well…” Shiro shrugged, an uneasy laugh building in his throat. “I never know when to quit.”

Hunk led him to a nearby chair, the duo tucking themselves into a dirty corner. Shiro slumped down, burying his face in his human palm as Hunk clung to the prosthetic.

“Do you want to talk about it? Your thought.”

Shiro quickly shook his head. “I’d rather not.” He looked up to catch Hunk’s eye as the witch knelt before him.

Hunk let go of his hand rested his palms against Shiro’s knees, offering a bit of his calming magic to spread through the contact. “Well, I’m here to listen whenever you’d like.”

The mage leaned forward to press his forehead against Hunk’s, and Hunk let him, murmuring comforting words until the crease in Shiro’s brow faded away.

This wasn’t the first time Shiro found himself shaken by a relatively harmless item from the game, and would probably not be the last, but Hunk was getting better at pulling him back and keeping him steady.

“Thank you, Hunk.” Shiro breathed, “You’re a good friend.”

“You’re a good leader.” Hunk easily replied.

\---

Eventually, the two of them had to log off. Shiro led Hunk back to his Balmera, so that he could port with his pet without having to wait for the cooldown that came with each of them porting separately.

“Thank you for helping me with my spells earlier.” Hunk said as he side-saddled his mount, fingers carding through the feather-like fur idly.

“No problem. Like I said, we support-types have to stick together.”

They shared a grin, and Shiro leaned against the Balmera, who lazily flicked its tail at him. “Are you going to be on tomorrow?” He asked.

“I should be! I might have to get off a bit early because my family is visiting for the holidays, but I doubt it. I’ll let you know for sure tomorrow.”

“That’s fine, it’s not like we have any guild-activities planned.” Shiro restlessly tapped his fingers against his bicep. “Would you mind helping me with my healing spells tomorrow? There’s no rush, of course, I just...”

“You just like perfecting your spells. I understand, completely.” Hunk waved his hand dismissively. “I’ve got you, don’t worry. We’ll practice all day if we have to.”

Shiro affectionately ruffled his hair, and Hunk hid the resulting tangle with his flamboyant hat. Then, from deep within the folds of his robe, he pulled free a statuette and tossed it to Shiro before he could get a proper look at it.

“See you tomorrow!”

Hunk and his Balmera vanished with that, transported to their base, and Shiro nearly slipped and fell now that his leaning post was gone.

The carved glass was so detailed that Shiro could make out every fine hair of the figurine. A lioness, by the look of it, stained every color of the rainbow. She stood proud on her perch, which was curved like a magnificent planet, as if she ruled it in its entirety. Underneath her feet sat the very sky itself, and Shiro had no idea if it was just reflecting the one above his head perfectly, or if the glass maker was just very _very_ talented.

It was beautiful, and Shiro had no idea when Hunk had found the time to snatch it up for him, but Shiro appreciated it immensely. It must have cost a pretty penny.

Shiro grinned to himself, holding it close to his heart as he pulled up his IMs and shot off a quick thank-you to his favorite witch.

Maybe he could finish that deflection spell for Hunk before he logged back on?

It was already way past midnight, but… Shiro never did know when to quit, did he?

**Author's Note:**

> just a few notes in case anyone was curious about spells and anything
> 
> (in order of appearance)  
> Orb of Disarray - stuns and debuffs; if used at a certain range, the enemy will be temporarily immobilized
> 
> Barricade - adds a nearly invisible barrier that blocks all (including allies, friendly NPCs, and enemies) from advancing past that point. Can be cast up to 5 times with no penalty. 
> 
> Vindicate - removes (most) enemy buffs, clears conditions (i.e. damaging spells/buffs from enemies) from allies and prevents more from being applied for a short period of time.
> 
> Vitality - speeds up previously cast spells, but can also be used to heal if cast on an ally. 
> 
> <3 feel free to ask questions b/c i love this so much and will probably talk about it forever
> 
> \---
> 
> check out my tumbly [HERE](https://jamthedingus.tumblr.com) if u wanna talk to me!


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